Secondhand Kiss
by unicornhime
Summary: AU Shoujo High School Manga. That's really all you need to know. Slice of life in the world of shoujo Makorra.


_This is just a light-hearted AU fic written as if Korra was a shoujo manga. I'm trying to work in as many cliches and tropes as I can because I think it's fun. And because I can. Enjoy!_

_Also, if you like it, please help me out with Korra Nation and click the link in my profile! Thank you_!

**Chapter One**

Korra hopped from foot to foot, bouncing a soccer ball over her knees, while she waited for the bus. If there was one thing she hated more than anything, it was staying still for more than five minutes at a time. On the rare days she managed to make it to the bus stop a few minutes early - like today - it wasn't uncommon for her to get sidetracked by something, wander off, and miss the bus completely.

"Careful, Korra," a voice drawled behind her. "That skirt is short enough, you're going to give someone a show."

Korra scoffed. "Shows what you know, Tahno. I'm not an idiot, I've got shorts on underneath." Hiking up one side to prove it, she stuck her tongue out at him. She wasn't going to admit how many mishaps it had taken for her to figure that trick out, though.

He waved that aside and smirked. "So what are you betting this year, think you'll make it through the first week without getting in trouble with Tenzin?"

Their homeroom teacher was famously strict, and he always managed to catch Korra when she was toeing the line of breaking the rules. Since he was also the soccer coach, she tried to stay on his good side. She didn't always succeed.

"Ha! I bet you'll get in trouble with Beifong before I do with Tenzin." She stopped her bouncing, pulling up her knee socks as she spotted the bus roll around the corner.

Tahno slicked back his hair. "You're on. Beifong doesn't scare me."

"She had you in detention the last two weeks of school last year for skinny dipping in the school pool," Korra reminded him. "You missed the variety show." Korra thought Tenzin was strict, but at least she could often talk her way back into his good graces. Not so much with Vice Principal Beifong.

He grinned. "Worth it."

The bus pulled up and the doors opened with a screech. The pair of them boarded, swiped their cards, and took their seats toward the back, Tahno sliding into the seat next to his swim teammates and ignoring Korra as she picked an empty pair of seats, dropping her bag and soccer ball on the seat beside her. Which suited her just fine; Tahno irritated her. And she really did want him to get in trouble before she did, a feat that would be much easier if they avoided one another.

A few minutes later, they arrived at the school and Korra filed out with the rest of the students, only to promptly be assaulted as soon as she stepped outside.

"Korra!" A burly 16-year-old tackled her and ruffled her hair. "How was your summer? I haven't seen you in forever!"

Korra laughed and squirmed out of his hold. "Hey, Bolin. Summer was great, I spent nearly every day at the beach. How about you?"

He shrugged, snatching her soccer ball and spinning it. "Mako worked non-stop, so I had to find ways to entertain myself. Taught Pabu some new tricks."

Mako, Bolin's older brother, strode up trailing underclassmen behind him. He always seemed to have a gaggle of admiring fans around him. That's what came from being as good-looking and tall as he was, even though he wasn't in any clubs and he didn't have the best scores in any class. Still, Bolin told Korra that Mako had a girl confessing a crush every other week. Last year, they ate nothing but chocolates for two weeks after Valentine's Day.

"Hey Korra," he glanced at her, then turned to Bolin to make sure he had all his summer homework and his lunch. Korra bit her lip, determined to ignore the way her heart sped up at the sound of her name in Mako's voice. She hated that she was yet another girl under his spell, so she just tried to ignore him as best she could.

It didn't always work out.

"So, I'll see you after school at practice, Bolin?" She reclaimed her ball and turned to head inside.

"Yeah, see ya," he replied, sticking on his carrot sticks from his lunch in his mouth.

"Uh, I'll come with you," Mako said quickly. "We're in the same homeroom this year, right?"

"Oh, um, sure," she said. Her contrary heart sped up. They switched to their indoor shoes (and Korra distinctly heard girls giggling and pointing out which one belonged to Mako) and walked to class in awkward silence.

Korra never did silence well.

"So," she began, trying to think of something more interesting to talk about that how his summer went. "Bolin said you worked a lot over the summer. Where are you working?"

She clearly couldn't think of anything better.

He glanced at her, his golden eyes wary. "I do a few odd jobs."

"Like…?" She prompted.

"You know, just basic stuff." He shifted his bag on his shoulder. "What did you do over the summer?"

"Beach, mostly."

Another awkward silence fell between them.

When they reached their homeroom, Mako slid open the door, and nodded for her to go through first.

"Oh, uh, thanks," she stammered, glad he was behind her and couldn't see the blush in her cheeks. They didn't even have anything to talk about, why did he have such an effect on her?

"No problem," he mumbled, and followed her in. His attention was instantly claimed by some of their classmates, so Korra retreated to the back of the room and picked a seat. Granted, Tenzin would moved everyone first thing, but she hoped he'd let her stay by the window at least.

Well, ten minutes later, she was still by the window.

And Mako was too, right in front of her. He gave her a small, crooked smile and he pulled out his chair and slung his bag over the back of it.

She was going to spend the rest of the foreseeable future staring at the back of Mako's neck.

She was going to fail all her classes.

* * *

Mako didn't know what he did to earn Korra's ire, but she seemed to be glaring at the back of his head all day long. When he offered a hesitant smile as he passed back an assignment, her frown deepened and she snatched the paper without a word. He turned back around, confused.

Rubbing the back of his neck, he tried to turn keep his attention to the front of the room. He didn't have much success.

He'd always been drawn to Korra, and at the end of the day, he lingered, watching her from the classroom window as she raced out to the soccer field.

She was a force all her own. Star of the girls' soccer team, and easily on par with her teammates on the boys' team, she was well-liked and often sought after for playing tips. She confused Mako a bit. He'd always wondered why she was so outgoing and loud on the fields, but then kept to herself in class. He also wondered how she wasn't receiving as many love confessions as he did. She was beautiful, petite but throughly athletic and strong, and expressive blue eyes that pierced him every time she looked at him.

Not that he'd ever tell her that.

Bolin was the ladies' man of the pair of them. He was sweet and charming and comfortable with the girls in a way that Mako never was. Mako just got nervous and either made an idiot of himself, or didn't say anything. Somehow, the other students took his silence for a cool aloofness. He didn't understand it.

The school bell chimed, and he startled, not realizing how long he'd been standing there. He needed to get moving or he'd be late for his part-time job. He hurried down the stairs and out the door, jogging across the school lawn.

"Heads up!"

Mako whipped his head up, only to have his nose promptly and abruptly introduced to the soccer ball flying toward him.

"Ah!" He cried out, his hands flying to his nose.

A string of curses preceded the arrival of his assaulter. "I'm so sorry!" He looked up to see Korra's form approached, those blue eyes wide in shock. "I didn't see anyone over here! Are you okay?"

Mako winced as he felt the bridge of his nose. As Korra reached him, she pulled on one arm to get a better look, and Mako noticed a streak of red on his palm.

Great. He couldn't show up for work with a bloody nose.

"I'll be fine," he grunted. Maybe it would stop before he got there. He had to walk a good twenty minutes. Though he probably would have to do it in ten today. And run instead of walk.

She swore again. "Here, let me see. I really hope I didn't break your nose. All your fangirls will kill me."

He managed to raise an eyebrow at that, but moved his hands so she could see. He had to lean down a bit, too… or rather, she pulled him down by the front of his shirt. She was too short to get a good look otherwise.

He focussed on not hyperventilating with her face inches from his own as she inspected the damage. She prodded him this way and that, and the only thing that could make this more embarrassing was if he just passed out from blood loss and oxygen deprivation.

She clucked her tongue. "I really got you good. Your whole face is all red."

Mako winced inwardly. Did she really not realize he was blushing?

"But I don't think it's broken. Come on, I'll get you some tissues until the bleeding stops." She released her hold on his shirt and he straightened, backing up a couple steps to put some space between them.

"Uh, thanks, but I've really got to get to work."

She blinked. "Oh. Well - "

Mako wanted to kick himself. She thought he was just blowing her off, he could see it in the way her face fell ever so slightly and her eyes dimmed. "Not that I don't appreciate it. I mean, my boss is really strict and hates when I'm late and I can't lose this job and…" he trailed off, running a frustrated hand through his hair and glaring at the ground.

She smiled. "I see. I really am sorry, though."

"Don't worry about it," he mumbled, finally remembering the ratty hand towel in his school bag. He dug it out and held it to his nose, feeling ridiculous. "Thanks for the help, I'll see you tomorrow." Running off without looking back, he wondered if he just made things worse between them. Aside from the hitting him in the head with a ball part, she was being nice to him. It was a welcome change from the open hostility demonstrated in the classroom. It almost gave him hope that things between them might be possible after all.

But then there was the bloody nose. Blood tends to put a damper on any romantic intentions.

Not that he had romantic intentions.

He was still kicking himself over it when he realized someone had fallen in step beside him. Looking up, he nearly dropped his towel in shock. "Korra? What-what are you doing?"

"I want to make sure you don't get in trouble for something that was my fault." She got a determined look on her face.

"You really don't have to do that." He also really didn't want her to know where he worked. It wasn't exactly the coolest job. He paused, then said, "Wait, won't you get in trouble for leaving practice?"

She shrugged. "Not really. I'll be able to soothe things over with Tenzin when I explain that I hit you with a ball and wanted to make sure you were okay. He gets mad when I 'don't take responsibility for my actions.'" She held out her fingers to give his words air quotes, then rolled her eyes.

"Is this…not the first time you've hit someone?" Mako asked hesitantly.

She laughed. "No. There's a running joke among the team that the season hasn't started until I've made someone bleed."

He looked at her in amazement. "That doesn't bother you?"

"No way, I'm proud of it." She pushed her shoulders back and lifted her chin. "Everyone knows not to mess with me. A little intimidation goes a long way on the field."

And off it, Mako thought to himself. He was starting to see why no one ever confessed to her - they were probably all scared she'd hurt them in some bodily fashion.

"How far away do you work, anyway?" she asked, eying the shops along the street.

"You're really not going to let me go until you see where I work, are you?" He sighed.

She grinned. "Nope!"

"At least it's only one of them," he muttered to himself. Then, louder, he said in a defeated voice, "It's over there."

Korra's eyes widened. "You work at Narook's? Why wouldn't you want anyone to know that?"

He shifted uncomfortably. "It's not that I don't want anyone to know, exactly. It's a quiet little diner and I'd like it to stay that way."

"I know exactly what it is, and I can't believe I've never seen you there before!" She exclaimed. "It's my favorite place, and the only one to get Water Tribe noodles just right."

Mako remembered that she wasn't originally from the city. "I forgot, you moved here last year from the South Pole."

She nodded, her face bright. "And I can't cook at all, plus it's hard to get a bunch of the ingredients here. I always go to Narook's when I'm feeling homesick."

"You should come in while I'm working sometime and I'll see if I can't hook you up with anything." Mako immediately wanted to put his foot in his mouth, but the look on her face made it impossible to try to take it back.

"Really?" She grabbed his arm in excitement. He ignored the way it sent shivers down his spine. "That would be amazing!"

"I mean, I can't make any promises," he stuttered, knowing that while Narook was a nice guy, he wasn't going to give away anything for free, and Mako couldn't afford to have it taken out of his paycheck. "But I can at least let you know where we get stuff."

"You would be my hero," she said, smiling widely. "Now, let me see if you're still bleeding. How late are you?"

He let her look while he checked the time on his watch. "I have about thirty seconds."

"Well, I think you'll look alright if you wash your face real quick. Just splash some water and you'll be back to your handsome self in no time."

His cheeks flushed. "Thanks. I'll, uh, see you at school. Bye!"

He ducked inside before she had any time to respond, and shut the door behind him, leaning against it in relief. She thought he was handsome. She wanted to make sure he was okay.

Maybe he had a chance with her after all.


End file.
